Ebay Question

[2.2vtec]

I was looking on ebay for some kyb agx shocks for my new car and the price on ebay was more then half the price these calgary shops are charging, and that's after shipping and convertion!!

Why is this the case? How come everyone just doesn't buy from ebay?

[freakin]

Don't forget about duty....and warranty.

If you're not happy with the product, you're pretty much screwed. There's not a lot of accountability on E-Bay. I still buy a lot from there. This isn't the case here, but I'm also just not too keen on buying used parts before I see them. I took a change with my headlights and cluster, but I consider myself lucky. If I had any problems with them, I'm not sure what I would've done. It's buyer-beware, just keep that in mind before bidding.

[Weapon_R]

Warranty is the biggest one. For parts like shocks that offer a lifetime warranty, ordering online is not your best bet. Duty isn't really a big deal if you get it shipped USPS. I just paid less than 20 dollars on a product worth $200+ U.S.

Of course, you do save a lot of money.

[Mckenzie]

Warranty is huge for items that are prone to failure. I would have been screwed if I bought my garbage Racing Hart C5 wheels from an online dealer....but I would have saved $250!

I ended up buying them locally at tunerworks (support a local business, knowledgeable & friendly staff, warranty is honored, etc.)

However, they started to fall apart 3 weeks after I put them on and when I phoned tunerworks and told them about it, they did not even flinch to honor the warranty. No questions asked I got full credit for my wheels, and until my new wheels come in, I get to drive around on these ones.

So what would have happened if I bought them from an online dealer?

"Yeah we might warranty them, send them here and we will get back to you."

-pay for dismount
-pay for shippping to US
-drive around on stockies for weeks unti lsomeone gets me an answer
-if warranty is honored, then wait for new wheels to come,
-pay for duty, brokerage again
-pay for mount and balance again
-possibly have the same thing happen again


I am so glad that I went with a local company. They are great to deal with and the service I have recieved fromt hem is second to none in the city when dealing with the other ripoff tuner shops around. They know that they have to be competitive with internet pricing to stay in business and they are VERY comparable, if not cheaper.

Sorry for the long rant....just something you might want to think about. ;)

[2.2vtec]

What if it's from a parts shop and they are brand new?

[freakin]

New parts still fail. That's the point everyone's been trying to make. Your parts may or may not work. The chances of a part failure are the same as if you bought the parts locally. The difference being if they fail, a local merchant will likely be more helpful and easier to deal with in a warranty situation. An EBay seller would likely still honour their warranty, but you have to go through the process of sending it back to them, which involves shipping there and back, customs (duty) again, and having the warranty approved.

It's just a lot easier to take a part back to someone in town and have them either replace it out of their own stock on the spot or have them deal with the warranty right then (instead of waiting on shipping to the supplier). Generally you get better customer support locally, so it just makes it easier in the end.

Also, not that this concerns most people, you're contributing to the local economy. You're helping out local enthusiasts by shopping at thier stores and keeping the local scene alive and well.

[QuasarCav]

:werd:

If not for that than for the piece of mind. I would rather pay %20 more to know that they will work and if they dont then there is someone behind the product.

I'm still scared to buy anything of Ebay, I like to see the person i'm buying from.

[Gonthro]

i ahve made well over 100 transactions on ebay (both buying and selling) and i have yet to receive a bad product.

(if its only 50% of the cost on ebay then just buy it from ebay, then if it screws up, but another one from ebay, you're not gonna get 2 crappy ones in a row, and it'll cost you the same.. and if you dont need to order the second one (which you usually wont) then you just saved yourself some big money.)